After a slew of leaked photos over the weekend, Volkswagen has officially released the new Golf Variant, which will eventually be known as the next generation Golf Wagon, Golf Estate or Jetta SportWagen, depending on the market in which it will go on sale.

Like the seventh-generation Golf hatchback upon which it is based, the Variant is considerably lighter than its predecessor - up to 232 pounds or 105 kilos, and this despite riding on a longer wheelbase of 2,636mm (103.8 inches) vs. 2,578mm (101.5 inches).

The Golf Variant is 307mm (12.1 inches) longer than the hatchback, at 4562mm (179.6 inches) overall. Its cargo area measures 1,054mm (41.5 inches) long, or 1,831mm (72.1 inches) with the rear seats down, and the load sill is 630mm (24.8 inches) high. It has an impressive capacity of 605 liters with the rear seats up, and 1,620 liters when folded down.

Just like the new Golf Mk7 hatchback, the Variant is offered with two engine families, the EA211 gasoline units and the EA288 turbodiesels, all of which are fitted with a Stop/Start system that improves fuel economy by up to four percent, and a battery regeneration mode that is said to cut CO2 emissions by around three percent.

The EA211 turbocharged direct-injection gasoline engines are available in the following outputs: 85, 105, 90, 122 and 140 PS, while the EA288 TDI diesels, make 105, 110, and 150 PS.

The most fuel-efficient version is the Golf Variant TDI BlueMotion fitted with a 110PS (108HP) diesel, which when paired to the standard six-speed manual gearbox, returns 3.3lt/100km (equal to 71.3mpg US or 85.6mpg UK) and CO2 emissions of just 87 g/km.

The new Golf Variants are equipped with either a five- or six-speed gearbox, depending on the engine, with most versions to be offered with an optional DSG dual-clutch automatic transmission

VW will also debut the all-wheel-drive Golf Variant 4Motion in Geneva. It will be available as a TDI Clean Diesel model with 105- and 150-PS engines, while the German company said it has plans to offer a Golf Estate TGI BlueMotion with natural gas drive (CNG) at a later stage as well.